The invention relates to a handling apparatus for suspended transfer of loads, such as in particular to a crane for loading and unloading of containers equipped with a boom including at least two parallel tracks for trolleys, each track consisting in turn of two parallel track sections each with its own travelling crab for each track section of a trolley, the two travelling crabs working in pairs with suspended carriers allowing container handling.
A handling apparatus of this kind is known from the Dutch Patent Application No. 7211277. This design allows for two parallel tracks on different levels each allowing transfer of a load or a container. When the top trolley is operated, the container is lined up with the crane using a swivelling platform, thus allowing the load to be eased through the arms of the lower trolley. Although this arrangement makes it possible to move two trolleys back and forth on the same crane, which is a capacity improvement as related to the single trolley crane, capacity is still limited to one single trolley for each track, while hoisting, maneuvering and lowering of loaded containers with a heavy weight is a time-consuming job which greatly limits the capacity of the top track.